1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally directed to a decoy for luring wildfowl for hunting purposes. More specifically, the present invention is directed to a decoy in a feeder position.
2. Description of the Related Art
Decoys are commonly employed by hunters to attract game birds such as geese and duck. In order to adequately serve their intended purpose, it is highly desirable that a decoy accurately simulate a goose, duck, or wildfowl to be attracted. In order to make decoys more lifelike, numerous attempts have been made to automate a decoy or provide moving parts to simulate a moving wildfowl.
For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 2,460,128 (Greenleaf) has a rocking head and a propeller connected by a rotatable shaft. Movement of waves in a body of water in which the decoy is placed causes the head to rock, and thus the shaft and propeller rotate, imparting motion to the decoy. U.S. Pat. No. 3,000,128 (Mcada) shows a decoy having a battery powered propelling mechanism. U.S. Pat. No. 3,115,721 (Story) shows a feeder duck decoy having feet which are moved by the force of the waves of the water.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,689,927 (Boston) teaches the use of a radio receiver, positioned within a waterfowl decoy, to receive signals from a remote radio transmitter. The remote control can be used to operate an underwater propeller and rudder for directing the course of the decoy. U.S. Pat. No. 4,566,214 (McCrory, et al.) discloses a battery operated feeder duck decoy. A motor, weights, and coupling are utilized to impart rotational motion to the decoy. This motion causes the water about the decoy to ripple. U.S. Pat. No. 5,377,439 (Roos, et al.) discloses a remotely controlled decoy having a rudder that is responsive to electrical control signals. By controlling the rudder, an operator is able to provide directed locomotion for the buoyant body of the decoy.
While numerous attempt have been made to provide a decoy that simulates a live wildfowl, the need continues to exist for a decoy which simulates normal wildfowl activity in a lifelike manner. Particularly, many prior art attempts to develop lifelike decoys have been crude, and thus unsuccessful, or complex, and thus costly to implement. Accordingly, the need exists for a simple and inexpensive decoy for attracting wildfowl, such as ducks. The need also exists for a decoy which can be controlled and adjusted as desired by the operator to simulate live wildfowl. The present invention overcomes the drawbacks of past approaches, while meeting the stated and other needs.